


A Dragonfly's Work

by rl_nadroj



Category: No Fandom
Genre: Aristocracy, F/F, Homophobia, Think Shrek but make it gay homeless and human, a bit of fluff as a treat
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-05
Updated: 2020-12-05
Packaged: 2021-03-10 02:55:13
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,533
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27887122
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rl_nadroj/pseuds/rl_nadroj
Summary: Every dragonfly has its target to annoy, every rule has its exception, and every lesbian has trust issues and uhauling tendencies.
Relationships: Original Character/Original Character





	A Dragonfly's Work

Ruth blew gently at the dragonfly as it took sanctuary upon the sun kissed canvas that was her bare shoulder, rousing the insect to take flight once again. Her eyes followed the blurring frame of the miniature beast, her legs never halting in their forward movement. The flora brushed lovingly against her hips and wisped around her ankles with the swaying caress of the wind. Through her unceasing movement, she journeyed in hopes of filling the lacuna in the heart she held firmly within her hand and that she had long since unstitched from her sleeve.

With a single, carefree motion she twirled around and flittered her gaze amongst the small group of people trudging behind her. She took note of the solemn gazes that returned her bright, mischievous look. The fall of a heavy sigh from the lips of her nearest companion rattled through the meadows brisk, morning air and brushed past her ear, tangling into the interwoven lengths of russet hair that decorated the crown of her head.

With an exaggerated skip, Ruth hurried over to the exasperated younger. She raked her fingers through his tangled mop of hair and slung her arm freely over his shoulder. A gruff exhale was the boys only reply to her playful actions.

"Come on, Jay. Lighten up," she ordered, a serious look shadowing her features as she nudged him with her elbow.

Annoyance painted his face in a splattering array of colors before dispersing as rapidly as it had appeared. The boy nodded, his frame folding inward on itself briefly before he threw back his shoulders and allowed an easy smile to grace his lips. She returned his grin readily.

Encircling his wrist in the confines of her hand, Ruth took off at a sprint, dragging Jay behind her in a flurry of limbs and excitement. They rushed past the edge of the meadow in a hurry, the once gentle grasses now whipping at their exposed skin. They flew into the waiting arms of the forest, pausing briefly to signal to their trailing companions.

Upon the furious arrival of the remainder of their group, Ruth turned and moved to venture deeper into the shaded enclosure of the woods. The cacophonous calls of wildlife were strewn throughout the overhead canopy and laid to rest on the damp, muddied floor. She brushed her hand against the jagged surface of the nearest tree and swung her body around the circumference of its trunk. A small giggle bubbled from the depths of her gut at the silliness of her own nature.

With a slight stumble, she released the branch from her grasp and continued to pad into the depths of the forest, hardly more than a beckoning hand thrown over her shoulder as a signal to the others. Leaves stuck insistently to the skin of her calves, various creeping limbs of overgrowth scraping into the sides of her otherwise smooth skin. Moments later, the sure footed girl found herself moving down a worn path, her joyous manner transforming into a carefully blank disposition with each vaguely familiar step.

The rhythmic thuds of footfall sounding behind her assured her of the remaining presence of her companions as she moved forward, though she could not keep from glancing over her shoulder; she could not keep from counting their heads as they bobbed with each step. The group shivered, the beaming sunlight and blanketing warmth of the meadow long gone as the dawn of a new morning faded into dusk under the thick veil of leaves.

Hours later they broke free of the chilling cover only to be met by the unending darkness of night. The flickering of sparse lanterns cast chaotic patterns characteristic of a town in the distance, it was these particular stars that they looked for and followed with great care.

The young wanderers slinked through the shadows, sticking themselves to the darkest surfaces. Their ears where pricked, each purposefully in tune with the world around them, though only the susurrus of a stream trickled identifiably within reach of their open senses. Peeling themselves achingly from their shaded guise, they made their way toward the gushing flow of water.

The splash of cool liquid as it splayed over their bare feet and yielded to their steps within the shallow depths of the streams very edge was a harsh music to their ears. To those who risked detection at any moment, even this quiet, melodious plopping was felt to be a very dark and foreboding tune.

Bathed in the faint, silvery glow of the crescent moon Ruth was able to distinguish the figures of her small group on the reflective surface of the rippling stream. She counted each of the silhouettes with precision, and nearly sighed in relief when all were present, though her breath caught before it was allowed the chance to escape as she counted one other.

Her heart pounded fiercely against the skeletal bars of the cage in which she had locked it away, screaming to be let out: whether due to fear or another emotion Ruth was peculiarly uncertain. The breath that had trapped itself within her throat was then released with a vengeance that turned her once even intakes of air into anxiety induced pants. Her innards had turned against her abruptly, churning as panic overtook her petite frame. However, Ruth could not allow herself the luxury of such panic and so bereted herself for the lapse into distress and quickly sunk into a state of calm. As long as the extra did not cause harm to befall her companions, she would not chance detection by raising alarm.

Their journey through the stream was eerily calm thereafter. Ruth was mindful of her every movement, always wondering within the back of her mind what might set off the intruder, but she gave no indication of this turmoil on the outside. She kept her stride long and languid and maintained an overall unbothered appearance. Thus far, the strategy appeared to be effective as neither her companions nor the addition moved to disrupt the near silence of the night or voice any objects to their current course.

Stepping from the stream, water dripped in ticklishly erratic patterns down the sides of their legs, though no complaint was made and the phenomenon was largely disregarded by the exhausted wanderers. They hiked over a final hill, legs straining with each step, before they finally faced the one piece of salvation they could at the current moment rely on.

The abandoned house was unlit and blended in with the shadows that ate at it from both within and without. Its worn boards groaned in protest as a soothing wind feathered against its aching surface. Ruth took the door handle within her grip and turned the precariously dangling instrument, the wooden slab opened up with a resounding creak to what the group knew to be a haunted interior. Dust crawled up its every space and settled into the hidden nooks of its unglorified structure; webs were strung from wall to wall. She held the door and allowed for the passage of her group. As she looked into the staticy distance, she was able to make out the vague outline of the person whose reflection she had spotted earlier. From here, they seemed little more than a ghost.

Still Ruth's paranoia had not settled and so, as she too entered the unkempt shelter, she watched from a crack in the billowing curtains of the age stained window until she was certain that the other had turned to leave, at which point she slipped again out the door and began to follow this unknown.

If there were any shouts of protest from behind her, she ignored them, entirely focused on her current task. She trekked far behind the person of interest and stuck closely to the shadows so as not to be noticed, though she always kept them firmly within her line of sight.

They were set at a leisurely pace, one of someone who was entirely unworried that their presence may be noticed at any moment. Ruth sighed and began to lessen the space between them. From this new vantage point, she could make out vague details of the person before her, the girl before her.

The girl was lean, her baggy shirt hanging from her shoulders and her pants holding on with the assistance of a belt coiled around her hips. Her hair was short, a length most males preferred to wear as opposed to their female counterparts. Ruth scanned over the aristocratic features the girl donned, the wide, innocent doe eyes and high cheekbones prominent even from afar.

Just a couple steps more, and another pause. Ruth watched, fascination blooming within her narrowed eyes and in the pit of her stomach in a fit of seemingly drunken butterflies, as the girl bent over a particular patch of flowers. She did not pluck the plants from their holds in the earthen floor, she simply looked upon them with a twinkle in her eyes and, with her fingertips, cradled the petals in her tender grasp.

Moments passed before the girl unfolded from her position and continued her unhurried saunter to the town. Ruth moved to follow her, pausing only briefly at the flower patch in an attempt to see exactly what was so significant about them for one to stop and stare; she found nothing.

Ruth began to tire of this chase, thoughts of heading back diluting her previous panic and need for answers. She no longer bothered to hide herself, for not once did the carefree girl look back.

The worn dirt soon turned to cool cobblestone beneath their tired feet, yet still the girl did not stop. Ruth, becoming aggravated, abandoned her stealth entirely in favor of walking up behind the girl and forcefully pulling her into the nearest alley. The girl fell onto the wall with a muted thud and stared with wide eyes at the fiery woman before her. As recognition dawned on the lanky girl, she took in a sharp inhale, though she did not attempt escape.

"Why were you following us?" Ruth spat, pinning her hand onto the girls shoulder, her fingernails carving crescent indentations into the gaunt frame of the shocked younger.

Crickets chanted hauntingly in the distance as the silence between the two females stretched on indefinitely. While Ruth stared intensely at the trapped pray before her, the other took a calm notice of the summer's night surrounding them, seemingly unwilling to give thought to the question asked of her or perhaps it was that she simply lacked an answer. The night breeze tugged on tendrils of her hair and pulled at the ends of her clothes, crashing before her wide cerulean eyes in an ocean of unseen colors. Her breath fanned against the smooth planes of Ruth's face with an unabated warmth, a rosy streak painted across her cheeks and dabbed onto the bridge of her nose. 

When no answer was given, Ruth shoved the girl harshly once more against the wall, pegging her in place with her sharp gaze. A quiet rumble ripped from between her ground teeth as her annoyance was heightened with each passing second.

The girl snapped back, hitting her skull sharply against the wall behind her, she seemed to awaken from her dreamlike stupor in a blinking daze. Still, the younger was silent.

She was silent as she stared in awe at the night sky as it was captured in the glowing, feline orbs of the woman before her. In all of her theories, never would she have guessed that the universe above would shine the clearest against a backdrop so enamouring in its own right. She watched as lightning struck in the hazel eyes, spirals of yellow flashing boldly as Ruth tilted her head to the side, the faint moonlight catching in her trap.

"Answer me," Ruth snarled at the lanky girl before her, "Why were you following us?"

"I was curious." She replied breathlessly, goosebumps trailing up her arms and crawling all along her body in a spider web of tingles that both started and ended with Ruth's hand where it lie harshly pinned to her left shoulder: just above her painfully beating heart.

"Your curiosity could get people killed one day, kid." Ruth sighed and retracted her hand from the other girl.

"I could hardly be considered a kid," the raven headed girl huffed, ignoring the preceding portion of Ruth's statement.

"Look, uh…"

"Ely," she supplied, "and your name is?"

"Ruth. Anyways, Ely," Ruth conceded, testing the sound of the name, unwilling to admit to herself that she quite liked how it felt as it passed through her lips, "I do not care how old you are or what your name is, what I do care about is the danger that you following my group and I around presents. Just go home, kid."

Ely tilted her gaze downward, breath now coming out in a chilled fog, and began to nod, not offering any words to correct Ruth's statement; not bothering to tell the strange woman that she had no home. The lanterns of her eyes dimmed considerably before catching onto something that seemed to set them alight with a blazing inferno of unabashed inquiry. 

Ruth took note of this sudden change and followed the burning path of the girls stare. She was immediately drowned in fear; she found herself terrified that the girl might see her reclusive fiend of a heart through its layers of imprisonment, that the girl may try to unclasp the lock and release it from its heavy chains. Of course, she knew these worries were ridiculous, however as the girl reached her hand outward cautiously, pausing midair as her lashes fluttered upward, seeking consent, it seemed to Ruth that her fears had been realized.

Ely parted her lips, begging her body to regain the breath she had lost so that she might ask a simple question. However, It would seem that the fates had other plans as a dragonfly, barely visible under the sky of cryptic black, violet, and gold landed upon her outreached hand. Ruth blew gently at the creature, the subtle gust of warm air gliding across Elys hand and coaxing the insect into the sky. With the dragonfly, there quivered the peeping edge of a paper that had been carefully folded into Ruth's breast pocket: the object of Elys previous fascination.

Ruth promptly covered the paper with her hand and shoved it further into its place, blinking in an almost startled manner as she did so.

"Come on, kid, where do you live? I will take you home." Ruth sighed, signalling with her head for Ely to begin walking.

Only the sound of their footsteps rang through the alley as they meandered down its length. Ely chewed on her already chapped lips and contemplated how she might answer. Ultimately, she was unable to supply an alternate to her painful truth.

"I have no home." She spoke softly, shuffling her feet against the grainy earth beneath her.

Ruth paused, turning over her shoulder to glance upon the girl behind her, sighing in exasperation as Ely bumped against her in her unaware state.

"Sorry," she said, her speech still soft.

Ruth toyed with the mechanisms of her conscious, praying for it to abandon its whimsical need to adopt each of the stray puppies it happened upon. However, as a single, glistening tear slithered down the sides of Ely's pale face and dropped from its dangling position on her jaw to the ground, her resolve broke.

"Wish you would have told me you had nowhere to go when we were back at the house, it would have saved us all this walking." Ruth groaned, her limbs crackling in protest as she reached for the arm of the sniffling girl and pulled her into an understanding embrace.

"It was a beautiful walk," Ely recounted earnestly in between the hiccups that escaped from her throat in a jarring series of squeaks. 

She nuzzled her face into the crook of Ruth's neck and could not help but feel warm despite the cool breeze against her skin and the absence of the traditional warmth of the sun. As her arms wound around the other girls waist, she knew she was likely far more comfortable in the confines of this strangers grasp than she had been in any other as of late, that she was likely too comfortable at that, though as she sought the offered comfort, she found it difficult to act as cautiously as she otherwise would.

"Yeah, yeah whatever. Come on, kid, we have to get going on another one,"

Elys head popped up at this revelation, her eyes widening and mouth hanging slightly open. Ruth beretted herself for finding the youngers expression adorable and set her jaw firmly, though her lips twitched upward ever so subtly.

They released almost simultaneously from the momentary hug as Ruth pushed gently against Ely's back, her arm still resting in its position wrapped around the other girls shoulder.

"We get to take another walk?" Ely asked, hopefully, her head tilted as she stared into Ruth's eyes.

"Do you need a place to stay?"

"Yeah," Ely muttered.

"Then yes, you are going for another walk. Now can we please get moving?" Ruth's voice escaped in a low grumble as she rubbed her fingers against her throbbing temples and down the surface of her haggard face.

"Okay,"

"Finally." Ruth turned, releasing Ely fully from her grasp as she set an eager, albeit tired, pace.

The trickling of water and the click of their steps against cobblestone streets faded into the background as the girls settled into the world of staticy grey, weeping grasses, and lone calls into the deep abyss. Between them existed a peaceful silence: one immersed in the sights she missed upon the first couple of journeys past the area, her gaze flickering in wonderment, and the other focused only on her mission to make a quick return to the house.

The peaceful silence soon turned into a tense energy, one that screamed of unanswered questions and unknown dangers. Suddenly the dragging night was no longer the heavy blanket of comfort and security as it became shadowed with mysteries.

"Why were you all traveling together earlier?" Ely asks suddenly, curiosity piqued by the sudden question conjured within her unresting mind.

"None of us had a home or a family we could rely on, so we banded together." Ruth answered shortly.

"Do I get to join you guys?" This elicited a sigh from Ruth, though Ely noted that the other did appear to be thinking about the question despite her outward display of annoyance.

"Why do you think I am bringing you with me? It is not for just a meet and greet,"

"Ooo, fun!" Ely let out with a quietly vivacious laugh that set the darkening night aglow once again.

"Of course you would think so," Ruth muttered under her breath, taking in a relieved breath as the house came into sight and the promise of sleep was at long last fulfilled.

*****

The soft glow of midmorning sunlight wakes Ruth from her peaceful slumber as it dashes across her face and dances in between the lustrous strands of her eyelashes. She blinks carefully, squinting as she heaves her body into a sitting position, a muffled groan breaking from between her lips and vibrating from her unused vocal cords.

With an upward reach, Ruth stretches her stiff muscles and rolls her shoulders backwards and forwards. A warm yawn passes through her and she carefully begins to move her heavy legs, only then does she notice the arms that pin her limbs to the floor beneath her.

Looking down toward the newly recognized source of radiating heat, she breaks out into a blush that casts itself over her cheeks and crawls down her neck in an outburst of tingling. Ely had wrapped her arms firmly around Ruth's legs in her unconscious state, grasping as one would at a teddy bear or other such childhood object of comfort. Ruth fixated on the scene before her, taking in the gentle expression of the other girl, not noticing as her own lips tilted upward.

Eventually, Ruth allowed her gaze to wander, only just recognizing the peculiar silence that filled the small room. Sunlight glistened against the dew covered spider webs, forming luxurious, jewel covered chandeliers above her still sleep fogged mind. The windows cast their age stained rainbows around the room and the occasional omniscient creek lulled the household with its orchestral tune.

However, her eyes quickly landed on the figures of her group, each member standing within close proximity of her current source of embarrassment, bearing expressions that had Ruth shuddering as what was to come would most definitely not be to her liking. They smirked freely in her direction, Jay throwing in a mocking wiggle of his eyebrows, with the exception of a single member. Weary glances and careful movements were the signs of this person's awareness as opposed to the playful attitude of the others.

Ruth coughed, trying to tug her legs from the constricting hold of the younger without result. She shot a glare at her companions, momentarily silencing their snickering as she reached toward the raven headed girl and shook her shoulders fervently.

A heavy groan fell from pale pink lips as the girl rolled her body fully on top of Ruths legs and took the outreached hand into her grasp.

"Five more minutes," Ely whispered sleepily.

A chorus of cackles ensued from the surrounding audience as their leader was contorted into the form of a pretzel by the stranger now laying in her lap. Ruth threw her head back, muttering to herself as she took in the view of the ceiling with unseeing eyes and counted backwards from ten within her head.

In a final attempt at salvation, Ruth thrashed within the barring confines of the girls cage of limbs, foregoing all dignity in her need to flee the current situation. Though, if not for the resulting chorus of hyena laughter, Ruth did not know if the girl would have otherwise woken up.

Ely cracked open her eyes, blinking slowly as she processed the ruckus around her, jumping with surprise as she noticed her current position.

"Im sorry," Ely said, a blush tinting her cheeks and creeping up her temples as her gaze flittered between Ruth and the ever intriguing ground.

"Whatever, kid." Ruth sighed, standing as the feeling of pins and needles began to abate, "Just get up, I need to introduce you to everyone."

Ely nodded, despite knowing that Ruth had not seen it as she had turned on her heels and promptly marched to take a seat on the surface of the rocky table set closely to her previous location. Ruth folded her legs in a crisscrossed manner atop the splinting wood, not flinching as its entire frame leaned with her weight. Other members of the group followed suit, taking a place at, around, or on top of the table.

Ely rose slowly, folding her legs to her chest and pressing her palms against the sloping surface of her knee as she pushed off the floor. She took note of the four figures taking their statuesque positions by Ruth's side, feeling as anxiety was absorbed seemingly through the air into her skin and laced itself through her veins in a stomach curdling concoction.

She pulled at her sleeves and grasped at her wrists, seeking again the now missing source of comfort, as she took small, quiet steps toward the intimidating group. With each step, her shoulders hunched inward slightly and her clammy hands rubbed higher on her goosebump infested arms.

Finally standing before the table, the realistically short distance having been turned into a marathon within Elys mind, she found herself short of breath and unable to take the full force of the many stares.

"Come on, kid. Despite what you may think, we do not have all day." Ruth groaned, leaning her elbows against the table as she folded over in a dramatic display of her impatience.

The resounding creak of the table combined with the echoing of the spoken words themselves startled Ely out of her daze. She gathered her bearings and scurried to collect the frightened fragments of her thoughts.

"Ruth, give the kid a minute. She is clearly nervous." Jay uttered with a soft smile that quickly turned into a devious smirk, "Besides, if anyone wasted a day, its you." 

"Excuse me," Ruth's piercing stare, that would have pinned any other in their place, only served to further amuse the man before her. 

"You heard me, miss 'I am going to sleep in for half a day', plus you broke rule number 3."

"I did not!" Their shouts echoed with the promise of a childish argument as the air gathered tension. One could tell simply from the sly bubbling of his lips that Jay was prepared with a short phrase that would instigate an all out squabble.

"Technically, and I hate to validate his argument, you did in fact break the rule" a new voice called as its owner, a tall gangly teenager with glasses sliding precariously down the bridge of his nose, stepped carefully between the immature leaders of his group.

"See!" Jay shouted victoriously, " and you all thought I would be the one to break it." He put a hand to his forehead and leaned backward woefully, shaking his head all the while.

"Technically I did not break the rule. The kid is one of us," Ruth insisted, slamming a hand onto the surface of the table," and while we are on the subject of the kid, her name is Ely."

Ely stepped forward with a quiet wave and a muttered greeting, wincing only momentarily as the ridge of her hip bone knocked into the table with a clumsy thump. Upon making her presence known once again, the room dissolved into an all consuming silence as the group of fellow teenagers blinked at the newcomer before erupting into a chaotic mess of overlapping speech.

"Why is she here?" A girl asked once all was quiet, her voice edging on venomous as she eyed Ely.

"I thought I made that clear when I said she is one of us," Ruth rubbed at the bridge of her nose, pressing gently at the tender flesh, "she has no place to go."

"Can we trust her?"

"Oh, Callie, be quiet! How could we not trust someone so adorable?" Another girl, a near perfect duplicate of the weary female eyeing Ely, said. This one approached Ely with an easy smile and rubbed gently at her shoulders from behind in a soothing manner before wrapping her arms around the shaking girl.

"Fine, do what you will." Callie grudgingly said, "Just make sure she knows the rules so that we do not receive backlash from this." 

Ely watched with wide eyes as Callie crossed her arms, the entirety of her frame on guard, as though Ely were going to transform into a rabid dog at any moment.

"Do not mind them, the twins are harmless." Jay nudged Elys side, throwing a smile to the girl who stood just behind the newcomer.

"What about everyone else?" Ely's voice was small, her lips pouting slightly.

"Equally as harmless," he smirked, "if not moreso."

Ely released a breath she had not realized she had been holding, it would seem that Callie was not the only one on edge here.

"I am Jay, by the way," he added, reaching his hand out for a gentle shake of the hand, one which was accepted almost gratefully by the confused and startled girl who was trying desperately to ignore the ruckus occurring in the background of their quiet conversation.

"Nice to meet you, im Ely"

"I know," Jay chuckled softly, "Ruth literally just told us." Ely looked down, pulling again at her loose sleeve, an embarrassed blush staining her skin.

"Anyway," Ruth stood up, clapping her hands to redirect the scattered attention, "that is Brighton, he talks in growls if you wake him up."

"Why is that how you introduce me?" The gangly male from earlier muttered as he was introduced.

"The twins - Callie and Connie - they can be fairly reclusive so do not panic if they disappear for a couple days," Ruth continued, pointing at each of the members as they were introduced, "I believe Jay just introduced himself to you, and you already know my name is Ruth."

Ely blinked, looking over each of the group members as she branded their names and faces into her mind. There were not many of them, Ely thought, so it should not be too difficult to keep their names in order.

"One last thing," Ruth began, staring sternly at Ely, "We have three rules that we all must follow. One, if you are caught we will not go after you; two, if you are caught you will not speak of us; and three, no bringing people to our current place of hiding. The only exception to any of the rules is the initiation of a new member."

The room that had previously held such lightheart fun and an almost familial feeling now began to make Ely shiver. The rules were harsh, but they kept the group, as a whole, safe. The rules were necessary; everyone understood this, even if they did not always agree with them.

This chilly air did not last long as it quickly dissipated under that weight of pressing curiosity and determination to get to know the newcomer.

For the remainder of the quickly fading day, the group took the rare time off as an opportunity to grow closer to their new member. The house was filled with laughter and cheer as each person recounted stories of years past: stories of a drunken bard who was convinced that his tongue had been cut out of his mouth, of a broom that "mysteriously" lost all of its bristles the night before cleaning day, and of a wedding that no one seemed to have heard of despite the invitations being sent out weeks prior only to find that their daughter had instead carried said invitations to each of the neighborhood animals.

Echoes of laughter bounced off the walls and pushed at the cracks in its aged exterior. Yet, Ruth stood with her arms crossed by the window. She was unmoving and unwilling to partake in the activities of her group. Even Callie had given in to her twin at some point during the night, but still Ruth stood insistently alone.

In the morning they would resume traveling. It was dangerous to stay in one area for too long or the risk of detection increases. If one were to ask Ruth, they had already stayed too long, otherwise Ely would not have followed them.

*****

The days passed monotonously in a strict procession of traveling, eating, and sleeping. Ely was easily adopted into the group by a majority of its members, though Callie and Ruth did not appear to warm up to her much.

Ely had developed a habit of following Ruth, always obediently doing as she said even if it meant leaving Ruth's side. The girl seemed entirely lost and in search of some form of comfort that she thought Ruth could give her. However, curt replies were the most polite response she was given, if not simply being ignored.

They were on the move again, walking behind Ruth as they glided over hills and trekked through unending fields. The group had taken to singing a travelling song that day. 

Ely sat carefully perched on Brightons shoulders after he had good naturedly thrown her up there moments before. She hummed to the melody of the cheerful song and clapped her hands delightedly, even as her attention was captured by her ravenous curiosity as she saw Jay and Ruth begin to converse a bit ahead of the rest of the group.

*****

"Come on, Ru." Jay spoke with a playful hop to his step, "Lighten up."

Ruth turned to him with an annoyed scowl, "I hate it when you use my own lines against me."

"Which is why I did it."

The two fell into a brief silence, walking comfortably side by side despite Ruth's internal struggle against her initial instinct to glare at the boy.

"She is harmless. There is no need to go through the whole melodramatic ice queen facade." Jay pointed out, breaking the momentary quiet.

"I do not care how harmless she seems. I have agreed to take her under my care, nothing more and nothing less." Ruth huffs, quickening her pace.

"What has she done to deserve this treatment from you? You know nothing about her."

"I am just on edge. She saw the paper, Jay." Ruth reasoned, her words quieting toward the end.

"Please tell me that is not the only reason." His voice came out in a pleading manner.

"Look, she is too curious. I would rather not have to explain why I carry my own obituary."

"Again, I repeat, that is not the only reason, right?"

"Maybe it is, maybe it is not." Ruth turned, glancing back at their trailing companions, her eyes catching on their current topic of conversation as she did so.

"I think she likes you" Jay said with a gentle nudge to Ruth's side.

Ruth stopped in her tracks, her frame visibly stiffening as her muscles coiled temsely beneath her skin. She turned.

"Lovely." She sighed.

"Somehow, I think you misunderstood me." Jay mused with a corny rap of his knuckles against the side of his cheek, "I think she could like you romantically, at the very least she looks up to you. Hell, she follows you like a puppy."

"She barely knows me." Ruth said with a mild growl.

"The way I see it," Jay began, "if she likes this bullshit side of you then she would probably love the playful one."

"Now why would I want that?"

"Are you actually trying to lie to me?" Jay laughed, slinging his arm across Ruth's shoulders as they began to move once more, "We both know that I have been around you far too long for that to work."

"That will not stop me from trying" Ruth said with a sideways glance.

"I know that too. All I am saying is just to give her a chance, you never know."

"What if I do know?" Jay sighed, shaking his head in near disbelief.

"I see you and that little smile you get when you think no one is paying attention," Jay said pointedly, removing his arm from Ruth as he moved to join the remainder of the group, "or perhaps you do not even know that you do it." 

*****

When Ely walked up to Ruth once again, silently coasting beside the lone female. Ruth glanced at the younger, not quite meeting her eyes.

The remainder of the trek was a creeping silence that was fast becoming familiar between the two.

"I guess I owe you an apology." Ruth said, breaking the stretching quiet, "There is no real need for me to be so short with you or for me to ignore you."

"It is fine. You do not know me. It is only natural to be uncomfortable around things that are new to you." Ely supplied, a tender, understanding smile gracing her lips.

"Yeah, I guess so..." Ruth conceded, almost grateful for the offered excuse, though her conscious ate at her to refuse it, "I still feel guilty. Do you maybe want to go out? Get a drink and just get to know each other? So that I am not so… uncomfortable around you."

"Are you deliberately trying to get rid of your only real excuse to ignore me?" Ely asked sweetly.

"Umm..."

"Okay," Ely piped, her eyes shining full force, "Are we going now?"

"Sure. I will just go tell the others and then we can go." Ruth said slowly, cautiously moving toward the others, her eyes never truly straying curiously from Ely.

"Sounds good."

*****

They were a couple drinks in and the already scarce money Ruth kept for such occasions was dwindling dangerously, however this did not seem to register as a concern in her ale fogged mind as she looked at the giggling, raven haired girl who was sat delicately on the stool next to her.

" Pretty." Ely gasped, leaning forward as she reached for Ruth and cradled her cheek, then moving to run her hand through the older girls hair.

Ruth blushed profusely, becoming statuesque under Ely's touch, entirely unprepared for Ely to topple forward into her lap. The two landed on the floor in a pile of heavily flushed faces, huffed out giggles, and a pissed off barkeeper who immediately sent them out of his establishment.

The two breathed in harsh pants, gazing at each other under the light of the full moon before beginning to move the way they had initially come from.

"What is the paper you keep in your pocket for?" Ely asked, still giggling in her hazy mindset.

"It is my obituary." Ruth said in an exaggeratedly hushed tone as she brought the paper out from her pocket, unfolding it for Ely to see.

"You died? Are you a ghost?" The question came out equally as hushed, Ely's eyes widening as she tripped backward a step.

"Yes, I am a ghost." Ruth said evilly, "Now you better run before I get you and possess you!"

Ely ran feverishly, leaving Ruth standing as a smiling figure in the distance before she too began to run. The brushed hurriedly through the town and over this lesser known path.

They did not stop for anything. Not bothering to view the flowers as they cast their shadows under the moonlight, nor did they notice as a lone dragonfly watched smugly from a distance.

When they began to run out of their already unstable air supply, Ely slowed to an almost casual walk and chanced a look over her shoulder at the, still charging, Ruth. Her foot caught on the root of a nearby tree and she toppled to the ground.

"Got you" Ruth said breathlessly, catching Ely by her waist just as she began to fall.

"Miss ghost?" Ely looked up in a slight panic.

"Yes beautiful?" Ruth teased.

"Why do all the pretty girls make excuses to be away from me?" Ely asked solemnly.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, my best friend got married and now you are dead and it makes me sad because I just want a pretty girl to hug whenever I want." Ely relayed, her voice dragging upward in pitch.

"You will be okay, beautiful, you will find a pretty girl someday." Ruth reassured.

Ely's brows furrowed as she mulled over her muffled thoughts, "Will you be my pretty girl?"

"..." the crickets chirped though Ruth did not say a word in either protest or affirmative.

"You better haunt me forever." Ely insisted, moving on from her previous question easily.

"I promise, I will haunt you forever." Their laughter rang out over the mock silence of the landscape.

"Good." Ely said in all seriousness.

"We have to get to bed. Come on, beautiful."

The two then hauled themselves in their tangle of merriment to the small basement in which their group was currently located.

*****

The household was one of unabated groaning and incomprehensible growls as the two hungover girls and Brighton were brutally awoken, a pale of cold water thrown over each of their unsuspecting heads.

"I see you two had some fun last night." Jay smirked, the still half full pale dangling precariously on uncaring fingers. Ruth and Ely, still groggy, clung to each other, unwilling to fully awaken despite the clear threat.

Ely nuzzled her face into the crook of Ruth's neck as Ruth buried her face carefully into the youngers hair.

"Come on, get up." Jay shouted, his words a flurry of sharp, flaming pinballs as they echoed through their fogged minds. He then threw the remainder of the buckets contents over their heads, leaving them to their fit of gurgled profanities.

"ejurismfjdpowqowkxf," Brighton stumbled through the cramped space, rubbing at his irritated eyes.

"Wow, you look and sound like shit," Jay said.

"Tuncka yno?" Brighton said with a tilt of his head, not truly comprehending Jay's words.

"You should thank me, you did in fact get the better end, as those two are the ones that smell the part." Jay said sincerely, pointing at Ely and Ruth as they slowly got off the ground.

Brighton simply nodded, turning away in his confusion.

*****

Hours later, they were again traveling. This time walking through the nearest town, in search of cheap supplies. Yet soon they were stopped short. There, before Ruth's eyes was a face that she had, unknowingly, etched into her memory.

There before the group was an overly familiar face sketched with precision on a paper that had been posted for the whole town to see.

Wanted Alive: Elyannah Cecile De Clare.

Ruth sucked in a harsh breath, turning to the lanky figure by her side. "I refrained from asking about your circumstances earlier because that is personal, but, now, I have to know. Explain this."

Ely squeaked, eyes searching for an escape, for some piece of comfort. She took the sleeve of Ruth' s shirt into her hand, toying with its ragged edge.

"I had to choose between being married off to someone I knew I would never be happy with, being disowned for something I cannot control, or running away before either of those scenarios could play out." Ely started, each syllable a shaky obstacle, "As you can probably guess, I ran away."

"What can you not control?" Ruth asked gently, her hand rubbing small, soothing circles on the back of Ely's as she took her hand.

"I cannot change who I am and the kind of people I love." Her admittance was whispered so quietly, so guilt ridden, that it made the other's hearts ache.

"You mean your sexuality, right?" Ruth prodded, counting the circles rhythmically in her head - one, two, three, four - as she tried to keep the younger calm

"Yes."

One. Two. Three. Four.

"They would throw you out for something so inconsequential?"

One.

Two.

Three.

Four.

"They might have done far worse that just disown me. I could not take the risk."

One.

Two.

Three…

The circles stopped, the soothing motion halted. Ruth processed the true danger of Ely's situation. She understood the decision that she had made all too well.

The aristocracy and their arrogance, and their unyielding inability to open their minds to a possibility outside those they have been raised to understand and accept. It all angered Ruth. She pulled on Ely's arm, tugging slightly in her rush to move away from that particular town and into the safety of their next hideout.

*****

Having been cramped in their latest shelter, one of the older members of the group beckoned Ely to come with them to gather some of the materials they had been unable to get earlier.

The two girls walked cheerfully, arm in arm as they strolled down the winding path. Though the air grew stale and the laughter ceased as they drew closer to a particular building. Ely pulled at the arm that held her, that dragged her closer toward her worst nightmare.

"Why?" Ely's voice cracked as she turned, gazing into the eyes of who she had thought to be a friend.

"I had to." The other girl whispered, brushing gently at Ely's hair with her free hand, "For the safety of everyone else, I had to."

Ely looked down, her hair falling into her eyes and covering her heartbroken expression from all those before her.

"I do not want you to go," the girl said, looking away as Ely's lips began to quiver.

"Then please do not make me leave," Ely pleaded, "Do not hand me to them."

"I have no other choice."

"Of course you do!" The girl broke down, shaking as they continued to close the distance between themselves and the sheriffs house, "Please!"

"No," the other sighed, "you have to understand, please understand."

Once the two stood directly outside the dreaded door, the other girl placed a gentle kiss on Ely's forehead and turned to leave.

Ely reached out her trembling hand hand, her fingers catching on the others' sleeve, "Can you at least answer one question?"

"What is it?" She asked without turning.

"Did Ruth order this?" The question came out as little more than a whisper.

"No," the girl answered truthfully, and Ely began to sob as another pair of arms grabbed forcefully at her, dragging her back to the reality of her nightmares.

"No."

*****

Ruth stood stoically on the porch top of their current hideout, slouching against the rickety railing. By this time, she was uncertain how long she had been in that very same position, watching, waiting for Ely to return. She knew it had been at least a couple of days as people had come and gone, all echoing the same thoughts as though they will have a new impact if regurgitated by a different person.

At first she had been frantic, and then she had resigned herself to this simple praying. If Ely was gone, truly gone, Ruth could not go after her. Ruth could not break her own rules.

After a few more hours, the sun took its position at the highest point of the sky. The grasses whispered mellowly with the wind and the chirps of the birds faded into nonexistence.

A dragonfly buzzed past Ruth's unseeing eyes, circled around her head and rested insistently on any available surface Ruth had to offer. She swatted lazily at the insect, drowsily wishing it would leave, subconsciously hoping it would bring Ely back. Though the dragonfly could not understand her pleading and could not fulfill her wishes.

The door creaked open, soft steps following shortly after.

"Do you know what the dragonfly symbolizes?" Callie asked, sitting carefully onto the wooden surface of the deck.

"No and nor do I particularly care to find out" Ruth's voice was numb, devoid of much of its characteristic fiery energy.

Callie hummed, holding her hand out calmly for the small, dignified organism to perch on. She smiled gently as it landed on her outstretched hand before drifting off once again.

"It represents transformation and self realization." Callie said. She pushed off the ground and joined Ruth by the railing.

"Or perhaps you are just being naive and it is simply an annoying insect that refuses to leave me alone." Ruth muttered bitterly.

"Or it could be telling you that it is time to change." Callie supplied with a shrug of her shoulders, "You have gone so long, not trusting anyone aside from our group. Maybe it is time to let someone else in, to embrace even some minute change."

"Why have you chosen this moment to go all philosophical on me?" Ruth coughed out a laugh with a vague squint to her eyes as she looked to Callie.

Callie simply hummed, shaking her head without verbalizing an answer. Ruth allowed her head to drop, hair curtaining her view as she fell into thought.

"I think you should go after her."

"And break the one rule that has kept us alive for years?" Ruth looked up, eyes blooming with questions unanswered.

"You may be alive, but you are not living. It has only been a handful of days and already you mope around as though you are a corpse." She pointed out with an incredulous look.

"I thought you disliked her"

"Hardly." Callie said softly, "I was weary of her, sure, but how could I possibly dislike the person that finally allowed you to begin to open up?"

Ruth nodded, the two of them basking in their understanding silence. Ruth leaned against Callie, resting her throbbing head against the other girl.

"Fine." Ruth began, "I cannot promise that I will search for very long, but we can at least try to look for her starting tomorrow."

"I could not hope for any more" Callie said with a vague smile before striding off the porch and off into the distance, stopping only to admire the flowers.

*****

The door opened and closed once more behind Ruth, though this time no footsteps were heard.

"I was the one that turned her in." A small voice uttered, the words nearly being swept away with the wind.

"Why Connie?"

"To keep everyone safe." She replied.

"Everyone but her." Ruth said with a resigned slump of her shoulders before she raised her chin, determined, and continued, "We will be looking for her as of tomorrow, and tonight you will tell everyone what you did."

"Will I have to leave?" She asked, seeming so small, so fragile as she realized that perhaps what she had done was not right.

"No. You were following the rules, I can hardly punish you for that."

"Are you mad?" She pressed, a glimmer of hope shining in her eyes.

"I am trying not to be," Ruth said, her lips pressing firmly together, "Now go, get away from me before I do something that I will regret."

*****

It is known that a person cannot simply disappear, but, as the person who usually performs the disappearing act, Ruth knows better than to think such a thing is impossible. It has been nearly a week since they started searching for Ely and two weeks since they had seen her last. The group has scoured the many towns and cities only to return empty handed each time. It is because of this loss of hope, because of these recurring disappointments, that Ruth has trouble processing the words she has wanted to hear most even as they ring through her ears.

"We think we know where Ely is," Brighton says, his words coming out in a garbled string of huffs.

"What?"

Brighton takes in a deep breath, steadying himself as his hands press achingly into his knees, "We found Ely, but you will not be happy when I tell you where,"

Ruth nodded, running a hand through her hair, her fingers catching on the many untamed strands, "How far?" She asks.

"A day's walk, we could cut it down by half that time if we run," Connie speaks up from Brightons side as she rubs the back of her neck nervously.

"Is there any pressing reason why we might need to run?" Ruth asks with an arch of her brow.

"Ely, or rather Elyannah Cecile De Clare is scheduled to get married within the next couple of days." Brighton relayed.

Ruth's hands gripped tighter at her scalp, ripping fiery lengths from atop her head. She watched as they fell, breathing heavily as she thought.

"Are you well enough to lead the way there?"

Brighton and Connie glanced at each other tiredly, "Give us an hour and we will be." He said with a resigned tilt of his head and an exhausted stretch of his stiffening frame. 

"Take what time you need, we cannot have you collapsing." Ruth said dismissively as she went to ready herself for the journey.

"Wait! Ruth!" Connie shouted, dashing toward her leader.

Ruth turned to face the other girl, an apprehensive look painting her face as her lips pressed firmly together. She struggled to rid herself of the urge to further beret the girl before her, to keep from appeasing her heart that beats with the need to show what pain had been caused.

"I am sorry," Connie cried, a tear falling from beneath her fluttering eyelids as she fell closer to the ground, "I was just trying to keep everyone safe, it never occurred to me that she meant so much to you."

Ruth's face smoothed over, a soft, contemplative look overtaking her previous one, "Honestly," she started, "It never occurred to me either. Not until she was gone. So I suppose I should thank you for making me realize, and for trying to uphold the well being of our group."

Connie sniffled, her eyes widening at the words being spoken by her leader, her heart growing at this small mercy. "I love you all, I never meant to hurt you."

"Now help us fix this and you can consider yourself forgiven by me." Ruth said, her gaze sliding over to the sulken figure of Callie in the distance, "Your sister, however, may be another story."

"I need to talk to her." Callie said, her voice dropping off breathily near the end.

"Then go."

Ruth watched as Connie took off again, feet unhalting in their frenzied approach. She shook her head, praying to all of the many deities that this drama would be over shortly.

Hardly a blink of an eye later, they were on the move, packs strapped tightly around their shoulders as they trekked over the first of many hills to come before they took off at a run that would last an eternity in the conscious of anxious and impatient.

*****

They had run day and night without stopping, and yet now before their final destination they paused and they observed.

From their vantage point atop a hill, the group was able to carefully scout the chapel in the distance. The scene itself was utter perfection. The birds chirped lovingly, calling from their respective trees and occasionally resting in smears of colorful feathers on the roof of the grand building. White horses clipped along the pristine roads, their fur a beautiful contrast to the greys and browns of the cobblestone, their manes flickering magnificently with each turn of their heads. The carriages rolled smoothly on silent wheels, bearing people of importance, wealth and grandeur.

The building itself was a towering structure of graceful stone and purposefully carved ornamentation. Its tallest keeps brushed against clouds of fluffy white and soft gold, and the sun beat down in a trickle of glittering fairy lights.

The scene itself may have been utter perfection, but the insecurity that brewed in Ruth's mind was a spreading stain against the picturesque landscape. Why would Ely ever want to escape? Why would Ely choose her over a lifestyle brimming with such shining seduction and vivid splendor as this?

Ruth shook these thoughts from her darkening mind, burying these demons in the very depths of her soul to be dealt with at a later time. Of course Ely would want to leave, her world was hardly as beautiful as it seemed from an outward perspective.

With a strengthened resolve, Ruth began to make her way toward the chapel. Her stride was confident and unfaltering. They quickly neared the already imposing building, Ruth crouched in the shadows, snapping her fingers demandingly for Brighton.

"Do you have any information on which room she is in?" Ruth asked, her eyes narrowing and mouth perched insistently as she finished.

"From what I gathered, all brides are to be placed in the west wing." Brighton said, glancing toward the ground as Ruth processed the information given to her. 

"The tallest tower."

"Of course," Jay snorted," What better place to protect the bride than in the highest room?"

Ruth nodded, taking her bottom lip in between her teeth before she turned again to Brighton, "What do we know about the protection detailing?"

"There is for certain a guard outside her door, beyond that I could not tell you as I found nothing."

"I am going to climb the tower." Ruth proclaimed.

"What?!"

"That is practically suicide!"

"Are you trying to get yourself killed?"

The replies came instantaneously, overlapping into a nearly indecipherable mush of protest. Ruth took in the many responses, not moving to speak until the whispered cacophony had faded to silent dread.

"We already knew that this way essentially a suicide mission, and yet we are still standing here." Ruth began, "Yes, there is a lot that could go wrong..."

"That would be an understatement." Jay interrupted pointedly.

Ruth closed her eyes and inhaled slowly, slowing her quickly beating heart. "There is quite a bit that will probably go wrong. But seeing as our knowledge points to all of the protection detailing being concentrated on the inside, I cannot simply charge into the chapel."

"That does not mean you need to climb the tower." Brighton reasoned, "Surely there are other options."

"What other option would allow us to retrieve Ely before she is married off and without risking detection?" Ruth argued.

"Are there any underground passageways?" Callie asked quietly from the back of the small huddle.

"They are blocked off." Brighton said, his tone morphing into one of a resigned nature, "She is right, climbing appears to be the best option."

"See," Ruth said.

"But, she would need a distraction. In the event that there are archers posted, we would need to occupy their attention."

"Okay, then we do that." Jay allowed, "But if you get yourself killed do not expect me to be supportive of any of your future endeavors," he turned to Ruth, his shadowed face clenching in pain as he gave in to the only apparent plan.

Ruth acknowledged him immediately, ignoring the nagging feeling in the back of her mind that told her everything was for naught.

"We have to get going now, as for an escape plan I guess I will be making it up as I go should the window not be a viable option." Ruth said, standing from her crouched position and making her way confidently toward the specified tower without so much as a glance back at her companions.

From there started her climb. Looking up, it seemed as though the entirety of the plan were a mistake, however, as Ruth took in a calming breath and pulled herself up the very first block, she knew that it was the only plan they had that might actually bring everyone home safely.

*****

Hours later, she swung herself shakily up the final obstacle, using her legs to leverage herself onto the balconies surface. Before she could even send a prayer for the safety of her companions, her eyes caught on the one figure who might bring tears to her eyes.

Ruth wiped the sweat from her brow, pushing her hair back, though that was hardly the reason for her hampered sight. She huffed out a breath, catching herself as a wave of dizziness overpowered her aching body.

Turning around the corner and into the room, she saw the figure once more. Perhaps just a shadow or a hallucination, but it seemed so real.

There she stood.

Her pale skin painted with symbols that swirled around her every curve and that spiraled up her limbs, turning the already artistic beauty into a living, breathing piece of sculpture: glittering glasses and smooth porcelain. Her short hair wisped and curled around a crown of jewels and flora that draped itself in strands of twining gold and vine down her back, laying gently on her magnificent gown. The dress hugged tightly at her corseted waist and cascaded to the floor in a waterfall of silk and lace.

Yet as her eyes teared and water flowed down her doll like cheeks, staining them with their salty mark, Ruth could only wonder how exactly they would get away as the dress was hardly practical for such an escape as had previously been planned.

"Alright, Beautiful, we are going to have to run and by that, I mean we should be moving right now" Run said, snapping from her brief daze as her paranoia kicked in and she could practically hear footsteps coming down the corridor at that moment. She moved closer to the door in a rush, beckoning for Ely to follow her as she reached the smooth ornate wood and grasped at its chilled metallic handle.

"Wait!" Ely nearly shrieked from behind her. Ruth turned to see the heavily laden girl teetering behind her, seemingly unable to walk.

"What is it?" 

"I am in heels" Ely explained breathlessly, holding on to the top of the vanity beside her for some form of support.

"Can you not just take them off?!" Ruth cried in confusion.

"One, I cannot reach that far with all this lace in the way and two, they are weird and laced up," Ely lifted portions of the overskirt to show Ruth exactly what she was talking about only to topple over in her frantic attempt at movement.

"Naturally." Ruth groaned," Why would they not put you in literal death traps for your wedding? Come here."

Ruth hurried to Elys side and helped her to stand while wrapping an arm around her waist as the other snake around the incapacitated girls legs. Her knees bowed under the heft of the clothes and the girl wearing them before, with a great deal of resolve, she rushed again out the door, slamming it shut in their wake.

Immediately they came to face a guard who had been station just outside the room, he stood sternly before the two runaways.

"What do you think you two are doing?" He asked, his voice grumbling lowly, lips curling into a menacing snarl that Ruth returned in kind before racing around the metal clad soldier, pausing only to kick at his shin and step heavily onto the back of the very same leg, not watching as he toppled to the ground. The clinking of metal behind them proved him to be at least somewhat distracted.

"Do you know where you are going?" Ely asked as she glanced to the guard who was now raising from his heap on the ground.

"Do I look like someone who knows their way around a fancy ass chapel?

"Not particularly," Ely replied, now locking eyes with the angered man. She gasped as his eyes seemed to glow with an enraged red.

"It was a rhetorical question, just tell me which direction to go," Ruth snapped.

"Okay, um, first we take a left and then there should be a staircase, go down that. Then go straight until you reach a large open area, that is likely filled with a crowd of people, but you should be able to see the door from there." Ely relayed dutifully, though her words fell from her lips in a nearly incomprehensible jumble.

"Is that all?" Ruth pushed her body to move faster, focusing on the rhythmic push and pull of running.

"I think so??"

"So our fate is resting on what you think is correct?" Ruth let out a desperate laugh, "That is kind of perfect."

"Sorry."

"No need for that, we are literally winging this whole plan"

Ruth continued bustling forward, twisting and turning as she had been instructed. Though as they enter the large foyer, Ruth had to pause, her breath catching in her throat at the presence of two very specific people.

"Are you okay?" Ely asked gently from Ruth's arms, still glancing back at the lessening gap between them and the guard.

Their hearts pounded with striking precision as one, a mixture of inescapable fear and adrenaline. Ruth slowly shook her head, her exhausted body beginning to collapse into an earthquake of inner turmoil.

"We have to go," Ely said, panic permeating her words, "Ruth! We have to go now!"

Suddenly the feline green eyes, a perfect replica of her own, and the twisted smiles of her childhood meant nothing. So long as her future, her Ely, was in danger she would not dwell on the monsters of her past. Her feet slipped against the gleaming tile, catapulting the two closer to their destination.

One more step and they would be there.

One more step and there they were standing stoically before them.

"Ah, my daughter!" A woman, bedecked in her finest jewelry and a flowing gown of velvet smiled knowingly at the two, a glimmer sharpening her eyes hauntingly, "I thought I would never see you again, afterall you did die years ago, and who is this you have brought with you?"

"None of your business," Ruth spat, her chest heaving up and down.

"I am afraid it is my business as you are my daughter and this is the bride to be who you are kidnapping." The woman spoke slyly, "How scandalous that would be, we cannot allow it."

"You are nothing to me and she is not getting married," Ruth said, raising her chin carefully to meet the serpentine gaze of her birth giver, "Now move,"

"No." The woman tilted her head, pulling her hand out from the arm of the man beside her. She then snapped her fingers and chaos ensued, simply not in the way she had imagined.

The twins barged through the door just as Brighton and Jay made their presence in the crowd known. Shrieks bounced from wall to wall and guards poured through the many corridors only to be blockaded by the frantic crowd.

In all the push and pull of the nonsensical action, Ruth hoisted Ely further into her arms and sprinted out the door, stopping only a short distance away to wait for the others and to rid Ely of the horrid shoes.

*****

In a flurry of hysterics and adrenaline fueled howls they barged over the hills and through the meadow. When all was quiet and the group had largely faded into the backdrop of the world once more, Ruth happily skipped ahead of her companions, her heart flying gloriously, only a single chain now barring it from freedom.

Ely giggled at the older girls antics, joining in cheerfully as the others groaned out their reluctant laughs. She hopped around Ruth, coming to stand just before her, a smile growing on her face in such a way that glowed brighter than the sun itself.

She reached out tentatively, pulling Ruth's heart into her hand and unveiling it from its chains altogether. With a feathery touch she reattached the beating organ to Ruth's sleeve and wiped at the tears as they started to fall from the elder's eyes. Taking Ruth's hand into her own, the two flew through the meadow cheerfully to the beating song of their two hearts.

Through the forest they journeyed, passing carelessly by the town and its flickering lanterns, and over the hill to the abandoned house they went. That night they would celebrate in a fit of drunken laughing and dancing.

Later, the two swayed to the popping cadence of the fire and the symphonic orchestra of the crickets chattering. Closer and closer their bodies pushed together as they circled ever so slowly and further and further the laughter of their companions seemed. Grass tickled at the bottoms of their feet and whispered excitedly to the neighboring plantlife, and all at once the greenery seemed to hold a glow all its own.

Only when sweat coated them in a light sheen and the purplish hues of night began to transform into the red and gold warmth of a new day did they halt their playful chivalry and goofy dancing.

It was in this moment that Ruth came to the realization that she may just love Ely and that she would, if not now, then later give everything for the girl in front of her, or at least she would have had the girl herself not been her everything.

Unwilling to part, Ruth plucked from the very depths of her soul a kiss and placed it gently into the palm of Ely's hand along with the rest of her world. They glided to the ground, fingers interlocked and legs weaving together as they rested their exhausted frames against one another and simply watched as the fire crackled and burned.

The noise of the fire ceased and all that remained were still glowing coals and flying sparks through the rising day. Ely looked to her side at the peaceful figure of Ruth, years later, and smiled.

"What are you thinking about?" Ruth asked, an adoring smile playing at the curvature of her lips and etching itself into the lines of her weathered features.

"How I wish you would have kissed me by that fire all those years ago," Ely joked, though truly that small kiss on her palm had meant everything to her and would not have been the same if it had occurred any other way.

"I may be able to fix that now… if you would like me to, that is." 

"It would not hurt to try," Ely stared into Ruth's feline eyes, the same lightning flashing in her fierce orbs as it did when they first met, and watched as Ruth drew closer before closing her eyes and kissing her as though it were their first time, as though it were their last time.

Off in the distance, a dragonfly drifts through the air with a rhythmic flap of its wings and is enveloped by the rising day, a gentle breeze to it's back. The mysterious being leaves without so much as a final buzz as a reminder of its existence. Of its work, only the redamancy of Ruth and Ely remains to this day.


End file.
